Outside the Beltway

A Reserve Specialist who endorsed Ron Paul’s presidential candidacy in uniform will only be reprimanded, not court martialed.

For a change, President Obama and not one the Republican contenders to replace him has gotten into trouble for accidentally speaking the truth.

A profile of the chief of the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center.

What the hell was Leon Panetta thinking when he got dressed? He’s surrounded by fit Marines in battle dress and he’s wearing a poorly fitted blue short-sleeved “dress” shirt,* pleated slacks, and perhaps the most askew gig line ever, calling attention to his pot belly.

Joe Biden got a little braggadocious last night.

An attack on Iran is likely to unleash consequences that we are unprepared to deal with.

My latest for The National Interest, “Ending the Afghan Slog,” has posted.

No, the Obama Administration is not plotting to nationalize the economy in the name of some “national emergency.”

A tragic incident in Afghanistan that’s likely to have tragic consequences.

Another chapter in the annals of American Politicians as Royalty:

Today, the #stopkony hashtag is trending on Twitter. Here’s why.

Carrol LeFon, better known on the Internet as Neptunus Lex, one of the original milbloggers, has been killed in a fighter jet crash.

CWO2 Edward Cantrell, a decorated Special Forces veteran, died trying to save his daughters Isabella and Natalia from a house fire.

Attorney General Eric Holder offered a somewhat alarming defense of the Administration’s policy on targeted killings.

The differences between the parties when it comes to Iran are far less substantial than the candidate’s rhetoric would suggest.

Arizona’s senior Senator want’s to bomb Syria.

Over the last decade-plus of war, the US Army has relaxed its promotion and retention standards for commissioned and non-commissioned officers. As we transition into peacetime, the pendulum is swinging the other direction.

A discussion in the comments thread of my “Time Running Out For GOP?” post led me to a post from four-plus years ago by frequent commenter and erstwhile blogger* Michael Reynolds titled “Money, Bombs and Jesus.”

The Pentagon has released the name of the US Army National Guard major murdered in an Afghan ministry this weekend.

The latest round of protests in Afghanistan prove yet again that it’s time for us to leave.

Why should lying about having served in combat or been awarded a medal for valor should be legally different from lying about athletic prowess in high school, the number of sexual partners you’ve had, or the size of one’s sex organs?

Yet another sign that international intervention in Syria is most likely never going to happen.

The military promotion system does not reward top performers rapidly enough.

The popular notion that the United States military is monolithically Republican is mistaken.

Sometimes there was no sugar or Splenda for coffee. On chicken wing night, wings were rationed at six per person.

As they did four years, ago the New York Giants will get a parade in New York City today. Some are wondering when Iraq War vets will get theirs.

Mitt Romney’s statements about the planned early draw down in Afghanistan make no sense whatsoever.

A change in the law will radically increase retirement pay for generals and admirals.

Andrew Exum notes that most analysts who call for military intervention fail to specify the particulars.

We need to have opinions on a subject as serious as war with Iran.

Everything the critics say about the decision is right–and so is the decision.

Not surprisingly, Republicans are trying to reverse the automatic cuts to defense spending agreed to in August.

My latest for The Atlantic explains, “Why We Should Be Glad the Haditha Massacre Marine Got No Jail Time.”